The Beach Report

Every year they pull people off Oregon beaches. A sneaker wave runs far up the beach with no warning, even on calm days. Never turn your back on the ocean, and keep kids and dogs well back from the waterline.

Wet driftwood logs weigh as much as a car, and even a small wave can lift and roll one. Never sit, stand, or climb on logs anywhere near the surf line — log rolls are one of this coast's deadliest accidents.

Stay calm and don't fight it — you can't out-swim a rip, and exhaustion is what drowns people. Swim parallel to the shore until you're out of the pull, then angle back in. Can't make progress? Float, wave an arm, and yell for help. Rips pull you out, not under.

Drown your fire and stir until it's cold to the touch. Burying coals in sand insulates them — they smolder for hours, invisible, and someone barefoot always finds them. Buried firepits send people to the hospital every summer.

Coves and beaches around headlands that are walkable at low tide can disappear on the incoming tide. Check the tide chart above before rounding a point, and know when it turns — give yourself time to get back.

Even in August. Cold-water shock steals your breath and your strength in minutes. Wading is fine — swimming without a wetsuit is not the relaxed dip it looks like.